Forensic Analysis of the Casey Anthony Trial

Forensic Analysis of the Casey Anthony Trial 1The trial against Casey Anthony for the murder of her daughter, Caylee Anthony, was the court case covered by all media outlets.

In the cursed vehicle, there has been a deceased corpse that emits an odor similar to her daughter’s vehicle, as reported by Cindy. Casey discovered about the abduction of Caylee Anthony from Cynthia Anthony, who disclosed the information to the 911 dispatcher during a separate 911 call. Casey Anthony reported the theft of money and a car in her 911 call, while Caylee Anthony’s grandmother and Casey Anthony’s mother, Cynthia Anthony, placed a call on July 15, 2008.

In 2008, it was discovered upon investigation that Casey had been employed by Universal Studios approximately two years before. It was also reported that she had been staying in the apartment which Zanaida, the nanny provided by Studios Universal, led investigators to, but the apartment was vacant since late February when Casey discovered it. The last time Anthony saw Caylee was on June 9, 2008, according to reports from Casey.

Casey Anthony was arrested for child neglect, making false official statements, and obstructing a criminal investigation because of the inconsistencies in her official statements to the police and the delayed reporting of the missing child.

Forensic Analysis of the Casey Anthony Trial 2Evidence Admitted in Court: Human Hair found in trunk of Casey Anthony’s vehicle: The theory that Casey Anthony stored her daughter in the trunk after subduing Caylee with chloroform was bolstered by the hair found in the trunk. The discovered hair was identified as human hair but because of the absence of hair root or tissue DNA could not be extracted for precise identification. Microscopically, the unknown hair sample found in the trunk exhibited similarities to a known hair sample of Caylee Anthony but could not be confirmed with certainty. Instead, mitochondrial DNA was used to narrow down the identity. Mitochondrial DNA is forensically useful to confirm a female lineage but does not individualize to one person. Therefore, confirming the human hair found in the trunk as one that comes from the Anthony female lineage is the only information deduced from the mitochondrial DNA analysis. The FBI laboratory analysis on the human hair found in the trunk of Casey Anthony’s vehicle exhibited characteristics of decomposition near the end where the root would be found.

Evidence of decay in Casey Anthony’s trunk was demonstrated through the analysis of odor, a technique developed by Dr. Vass. Dr. Vass collected substances for the Database of Decompositional Odor Analysis and discovered 41 substances linked to decay in Anthony’s trunk. Almost all substances discovered during the early stages of decay were present in the air captured in the trunk. However, the absence of undecane, a primary substance found in human decay and an important indicator in other reputable articles, was not clarified. Dr. Furton, the expert witness for the defense attorney, contested the conclusion that the findings provided proof of decay.

The technician was able to isolate compounds associated with human decomposition, which came into question due to excessive levels of chloroform. The gas chromatography mass spectrometer was used to identify these compounds. The laboratory results also found levels of compounds in the air that are associated with decomposition.

Forensic Analysis of the Casey Anthony Trial 3Stained Paper Towel: A stained paper towel found with large amount of fly pupa was sent for analysis. The cause of the stain was characteristic for adipocere profile, also known as grave wax. Adipocere is the breakdown of fat by water in an oxygen-deprived environment. This fact was disputed because the adipocere profile found on the stained paper towel originated from human fat when there are fatty acids, which can result in adipocere, also found in the garbage content of the trunk.

The alleged decomposing body came from it, whether or not it resulted in the contents spilling from the carpet trunk. The findings of chloroform in the trunk were also confirmed by the FBI laboratory. The presence of chloroform resulted in a high level of analysis of the air in the trunk, according to Dr. Vass.

On July 2, 2016, Dr. Huntington disputed the occurrence of insect activity near the entry of an insect. In his report, Dr. Haskell also mentioned the initial entry of insect activity on July 16, 2008. However, there was no definitive reason to state that the insects originated from human remains, so the contents of the maggots’ gut were not tested for DNA. To further explain this, Dr. Huntington found common flies on bags of trash that contained adult insects, pupa, larvae, excrement, and food material in the trunk. The analysis showed that the presence of these insects in the trunk does not confirm the decomposition of the body. Therefore, these insects are commonly associated with human garbage and decaying matter. Although Dr. Huntington disputed the findings, the prosecution introduced another piece of evidence, which was the presence of Phoridae, Diptera, and Megaselia scalaris insects that thrive on dead bodies.

An inquiry was carried out on Casey Anthony’s laptop under a search warrant, uncovering recent inquiries of “chloroform” and “self defense.” The prosecution introduced these pieces of information as proof of premeditation in the courtroom. Nevertheless, it was not established that either Casey Anthony or Cindy Anthony executed the searches, despite the information retrieved from the laptop. Cindy Anthony asserted during both direct and cross-examination that she was the individual who conducted the searches, but the timestamps at her place of employment suggested that it was improbable.

The prosecution stated that the duct tape found partially attached to the duct tape used as a murder weapon was demonstrated in court through an animation showing an image of Caylee’s nasal and mouth cavity being covered with it, suggesting suffocation.

Forensic Analysis of the Casey Anthony Trial 4The defense countered saying that the mandible, or lower jaw, was found attached to the skull. In decomposed bodies, the lower jaw is often found detached from the skull because the connective tissue has decayed. Rather, according to Dr. Schultz, it was the hair, leaf litter, and root that kept the skull and mandible attached.

Caylee’s Law was established in multiple states as a result of a felony in certain states that criminalizes the failure to report a missing child. The total amount incurred for this was $217,000. This particular case concluded with the ruling that Casey Anthony is obligated to cover the expenses associated with deceiving law enforcement and the search efforts for Caylee Anthony. Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez filed a defamation lawsuit against Casey Anthony, who was found guilty of providing false information in a criminal investigation and committing check forgery on four counts. However, the jury acquitted the defendant, Casey Anthony, of the charges of first-degree murder of Caylee Anthony, aggravated child abuse, and aggravated manslaughter of a child after a 33-day trial. The verdict was reached.